Machine for handling loose materials.



I G. JACKSON. MACHINE FOR HANDLING LOOSE MATERIALS. APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1, 1909.

1,021,463, Patented Mar. 26, 19 12.

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Patented Mar. 26, 1912.1

11 SHEETS-SHEET 2 I o I G. W. JACKSON.

MACHINE FOB. HANDLING LOOSE MATERIALS.

- APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1, 1909.

Patented Mar. 26, 1912.

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JACKSON.

APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1 Patented Mar. 26, 1912.

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G. W. JACKSON. MACHINE FOR HANDLING LOOSE MATERIALS.

APPLICATION FILED mm: 1, 1909.

Patented .Mar. 26, 1912.

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' APPLICATION FILED JUNE 1, 1909. I 17,021,463 Patented Mar. 26, 1912.

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APPLICATION-FILED mum, 1909,- Y Y Patented Mar. 26, 1912,

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G. W, JACKSON. MACHINE FOR HANDLING LOOSE MATERIALS.

APPLICATION II I BD JUNE 1, 1909.

11 BHEETSSH-EET 9.

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G., W, JACKSON. MACHINE FOR HANDLINGLOOSE MATERIALS.

APPLIUATIOH FILED JUNE 1,1909.

Patented Ma1i26, 1912.

I Inventor:-

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UNITED STATES PATENT oEEIo GEORGE W. JACKSON, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASIGNOR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO

GEORGE W. JACKSON MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A COR- PORATION OF ILLINOIS.

MACHINE FOR HANDLING LQOSE MATERIALS Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Mar. 26, 1912.

Application filed June 1, 1909. Serial No. 499,527.

To all whom it may concern:

Be 1t known that I, GEoRcE VV. JACKSON,

a citizen of the United States, and aresi dent of Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Machines for Handling Loose Materials; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, referencabe ing had to the accompanying drawings. and

to the characters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification. This invention relates to improvements in machines for picking up and conveying to a desired place'loose'material, such as broken stones, coal, ore, and the like.

.' The invention refers to a machine which,

is specially applicable for use in excavat ing and mining work for picking up the broken and loose matter from a tunnel or mine-floor after it has been broken up by the blast, and conveying such material back to, andloading the same upon cars placed in the rear 'of the machine, by which it is removed from the tunnel, mine, trench and other excavations.

This invention consists, essentially, in the novel and peculiar combination of parts .and details of construction as hereinafter first fully setforth and described and then pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of the front-part or picking-up and elevating mechanism of a machine embodying my nvention. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the rear part. or take-off mechanism of'the machine. Fig. 3 is a plan of that portion of the machine shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is ,a plan of the truck on line -14, of Fig. 1.

tical section on line 66 of Fig. 5.

Fig. 5 is a horizontal section on the indirect line 5--5, of Fig. 1. Fig.6 is a ver- Fig. 7 is a vertical section on line 7-7 of Fig. 1. Fig. 8 is a detail vertical section on line S'8 of Fig. 1. on line 9-,9 of Fig. 1. Fig. 10 is a detail verticalsection on line 10--10, of Fig. 1. Fig.11 is a detail section on line 1111 of Fig; 1, of the forward end of-the boom, and illustrating the means for separately tensioning the two link-chains of the elevator, and' picking-up mechanism. Fig. 12 is .a detail vertical section on line 12-12, of

Fig. 9 is adetail sectional view Fig. 2, of the rear conveyer-belt and the guide-members for the same.- Fig. 13 is a detail section on line 1313 of Fig. 1, of

the rear end of the boom and portion of. the

vertical supports at the rear end of the turntable, and the mechanism for operating the rear conveyer. Fig. 14 is a detail sectional view of the rear-end of the boom, online 14-14 of Fig. 13, with parts omitted. Fig. 15 is a perspective view of one of the pickup and elevator buckets. Fig. 16 is a fragmentary front elevation of part of the steering device of the truck. Fig. 17 is a fragmentary vertical section on line 17-17, of' Fig. 4; Fig. 18 is a fragmentary vertical section on line 18-18 of Fig. 4. Fig. 19 ,70'

is a plan of the turn-table, and a fragment of the rear conveyingmecha'nism, all the parts of the operating mechanism on the turn-table being removed. Fig. 20 is a. longitudinal sectional view of the sameon line 2020, of Fig. 19. Fig. 21 is a side view of the rear end of said turn-table andillustrating especially the pivotal connection betweenthe forward; and the rear,

part of the machine. Fig. 22 is a side elevation of the standardcarrying the motor shaft and the shaft connected thereto which operates the elevator-mechanism on. the boom. Fig. 23 is an end View of the same, and Fig. 24, a plan thereof. Fig. 25 is an elevation of the outbearing for the elevatoropcrating shaft, which coacts With the standard shown in Figs. 22, 23, and 24.

Like parts are designated by the same 1 characters and symbols of reference in all the various figures.

The object of this invention is the production ofa highly efiicient, serviceable, durable, and convenient machine for use in open cuts, trenches, tunnels, mines, and other low and confined places for picking up the loose material therein, and elevating and conveying the same back of the machine and depositing said material in cars placed in the rear of said machine, said cars to be removed by either manual labor, motors, or

other suitable means. Heretofore, this'lo'ose material has been extensively loaded on cars or other conveyances in mines, tunnels. trenches, &c., by manual labor, and almost exclusively so in tunnels and mines, thereby making the removal of the dug, blasted, or

otherwise loosened material a very costly and slow operation. Owing to the confined and limited space in which the removal of this loosened material .must be performed,

between the loosened material, contaminate the air, especially in tunnels and mines, to such an extent as to cause very serious inconveniences and much physical suffering to the operators, all of which would be avoided were the loosened material removed from the mines as fast as the same is made.

My present machine has demonstrated, es-

pecially in the driving of the waterworks tunnels near Yonkers, N. Y., through granite, that it is capable of removing the blasted material much faster than it is made, which is of the greatest importance to the contractors, and reduces the cost of mining, and the removal of the debris, and the'sufi'erings of the miners to a minimum. 1

20, in the drawings designates a truck having a horizontal platform 21, which is suitably flanged and ribbed to stiffen the same. This truck, as shown, is a structure,

' preferably a steel casting, of inverted pan shape, the sides 12, 12, and the ends 13, 13, of which constitute the said flanges, while the longitudinal members 14, Fig. 7, and

transverse members 15, Fig. 6, are the strengthening-ribs heretofore referred to. This truck is supported on rear propellingwheels 22, 22, and frontsteering-wheels 23,.

23, the former being fixed to a transverse horizontal shaft 25, that is rotatively mounted at its ends in bearings '26, 26,

formed in the side-walls 12, 12, at the rear' end of the truck, as shown in Fig. 7.

3 The steering wheels are mounted on short, horizontal stub-axles 28, 28, which are pivoted, automobile-fashion, by means of vertical pivots 29, 29, to brackets 30, attached to, and extending laterally from, the for ward sides of the truck; the said axles bemg formed at their inner ends to provide vertical hubs 32, which fit between the upper and lower 'arms of the'brackets 30; said hubs and brackets being vertically apertured to receive said pivot-studs. The said stubshafts are connected with a suitable steer.-

ing-device which will be hereinafter de scribed.

Theobject of forming the truck-body in the shape of an inverted pan is toaiford spaces, and axle-bearings for the rearwheels within said truck'body, it bein essential that the entire machine is bui t as low as possible, owing to the mostly very limited height of tunnels and mines in which the machine is required to operate.

35, designates a horizontally swinging turn-table mounted on the truck-platform. It is pivoted at its rear end, and at one side of its longitudinal center line, to the rear end and at 'the corresponding side of said truck, the object for which is to afford space at the opposite side of said turn-table for a motor and for a run-board upon which the operator of the machine takes his position, it being borne in mind that the limite space within which the machine is usua ly op- 'erated, also limits the width of the machine, For this reason, the turn-table is also formed in the shape of an inverted pan, to afford space for those parts of the operating mechanism hereinafter to be referred to.

36, designates, as a whole, a boom supported upon a suitable frame that rises from the turn-table in such manner that the boom may be swung horizontally when the turntable is rotated from side to side, and vertically at its forward end, by means farther on specifically described.

Upon the boom 36 there is mounted a pick-u and elevating device comprising, in genera terms, a series of buckets 38, which are attached to two endless link-chains or belts 39, at spaced intervals, said link-chains being trained over sprocket-wheels 40, 41,

respectively, mounted on shafts 42, 43, at the forward and rear ends of the boom respectively. The shaft 43 constitutes a drivingshaft, and the sprockets 41 are fixed thereto. This shaft 43 is rotatively mounted at its ends in bearings 44,44, which are attached to, and project rearwardly from, the superstructure carried by the turn-table. The sprocket-wheel shaft 42 is fixedly mounted at its ends in bearings 46, 46, formed on chain-tensioning brackets 47, 47 fixed to the forward end, on the outsides of'the boom,

and the sprocket-wheels 40, which in fact are idler sprocketwheels are rotatably mounted upon the fixed shaft 42, in order to afford a certain degree of flexibility to the link-belts should one or the other of thebuckets meet'with abnormal resistance when in operation.

A take-off device is pivotally connected to the turn-table, and includes, in general terms, an endless conveyer-belt 48, which is trained about front'and rear drums 49, 50, respectively mounted in a frame, comprising two, spaced relation, the forward 'portions of said bars being downwardly bent ,to locate the pivotal connection of said frame sufficiently low to 'avoid interference with guardplates hereinafter to be described, which guard-plates are secured to the rearmembers of said superstructure. These two channel bars are transversely connected at preferably channel-bars 51, in

' ing from, said cross-bar spaced intervals, and at their forward ends, to across-bar 55, which bar carries medially a vertical pivot 53, which engages a pivot bearing 53, formed in a block 51, attached to, and extending rearwardly from, the turn-table, the said pivot 53 being bolted, or otherwise secured to, and depend- At the ends of this cross-bar 55, there are secured upwardly extending standards 56, in which 'are mounted the. opposite ends ofa shaft 57, which carries the forward take-off conveyer-drum 49. This shaft 57 constitutes a pivot about which the take-offconveyerframe has a limited vertical swinging movement to enable the machine and take-off frames to adjust themselves to uneven surfaces over which they pass. The pivotal connection afforded by the vertical pivot 53 permits theforward end of said frame to swing laterally with the rear end of the turn-table and maintains the receiving or forward endof the take-off 'conveyer di rectly beneath the dumping buckets. The cross-bar 55 is located high enough in the bracket 54 to swing over the turn-table rearend, when necessary, as indicated in dotted lines in F ig; 19. The shaft which carries the rear-drum 50 of the take-off con-- Referring now to the details of construction of the turn-table and its boom-suportin frame and the manner of mountin the turn-table on the truck, and mounting the boom on said frame, these parts are made, as'follows: The turntable, 35, as al-' ready stated, and as shown in Figs. 6, 7, 8, and 9, and in detail in Figs. 19 and 2 is made in the form of an invcrtedpanof which the platform 31 for1ns,as it were,-the bottom,

. upon which parts of the machina are mounted, and the side-walls 33, 33 and the endwalls 34, 34, form downwardly-pending strengthening-members. In the top-surface of this turn-table the're is formed a depression or recess a, best shown in Figsp19 and 20, of suitable depth, from the bottom a of which projects, downwardly, a tubular boss, 65, the cylindrical bore a of which engages the correspondingly'form'ed cylindrical pivot 66 projecting upwardly from the truck. Adjacent, and forward of this depression a, there is a further recess or depression b; and forward of this latter recess there is still another recess cl, from the bottomof which depends a tubular boss 78,

. the bore d of which forms a bearing for a transverse ribs 27, 27 and 27, as clearly indicated'in Figs. 19 and 20, and also in 0 other figures of the drawings.

The depressions and recesses in. the top of the turn-table are all located, with their 1011- gitudinal center line, at one side of the longitudinal center line of said turn-table; and running from the rear end thereof forwardly to the forward depression 6, there are, in the top surface of the turn-table, a series of semi-circular depressions, f, f f and 7, which form thelower halves of bearings 83, for a main transmission or jackshaft 82, in conjunction with bearing caps of usual construction, located thereon, so that the: lower half of said main transmission shaft 82 lies below the upper surface of the turn-table.

Between the boss 65 on the turn-table, and an opposing shoulder-at the lower end of the pivot on the truck, there are interposed a plurality of anti'- friction bearing-devices,

'the tnrirtable is supported on a plurality of rollers 69, Figs. 1, 4, and 6, which are mounted in the truck. These rollers are made of rather large diameter, for ObVlOU'S reasons; and in order not to increase the space between he truck-platform and the turn-table beyond the absolutely-necessarydistance', thc truck-platform is apertured at the required places occupied by said antifriction wheels (39, as shown at 16 in Fig. 6, v and the bearings 17, and their caps 18, for

the journals of said antifriction rollers are placed below the upper surface of the truckplatform so hat but a portion of the upper halves of said antifriction rollers project above the upper-surface of the truck-plat form. These rollers (39 are arranged in ,an

arc concentric to the pivotal axis of the 1 0 turn-table and engage an arcuated, downwardly-facing track 70, formed on the lower, forward end of the turn-table.

' 75 designates a forwardly-facing curved rack which is fixed to the upper surface of the truck between the bearing-rollers 69 and Y the pivot-stud 66, and is arranged concentric to the'axis of said stud (Figs. 4, 6, 8, and 9).

76 designates a pinion which meshes with said rack 7 5, and which is fixed to the lower end of theshort vertical shaft 77, that extends upwardly through the bore (Z in the boss 78 in the turn-table. This shaft 77 carries at its upper end the horizontal, beveled gear-wheel 79, which is entirely located" in the depression (Z ofthe turn-table, and which meshes with the two opposing bevelpinions 81, that are mounted to normally rotate freely on the main transmission shaft 82, as already stated, said main transmission shaft being rotated by a motor 85, located at one side of the turn-table in a depression 71, therein, the shaft 86, of said motor being arranged transversely over the main transmission shaft and provided with a worm 87,

which meshes with a worm-wheel 88, fixed of a clutch 90, which is splinedto said shaft and is slidable toward and from the pinions 81. The clutch90 isshifted on the main transmission shaft through the medium of a horizontal rockshaft 93, located trans versely above the inain transmission shaft and mounted in bearings 94, 94, rising from the turn-table, and preferably formed integrally therewith. The rock-shaft 93 has at its outer end, at one side of the turn-table, a hand-lever 95, by which it may be rocked;

and it carries between its ends a shifter-yoke 97, by which the clutch 90 is engaged in the familiar manner of such longitudinally movable, double face, clutches.

Referring now to the driving connection between the motor 85 and the rear drivingaxle 25, whereby the machincis advanced toward, and retracted from, the work under its own power, said parts are made as follows: 200, Figs. 4, 6, and '7, designates a vertical shaft that extends through, and has rotative bearing in the bore 66, of the pivotstud 66 of the truck. This shaft 200 is provided at its lower end with a bevel-pinion 201, that meshes with'a bevel-gear wheel 202, fixed to the rear axle 25. At its upper end said shaft 200 is provided with a hori zontal bevel-gear wheel 204, that meshes with two opposing bevel-pinions 205, 20:"), whichare loosely mounted upon the main transmission shaft 82. These two, bevelpinions are constructed to .be separately locked to the main transmission shaft to transmit power to the vertical shaft 200, and

through the bevel-gearing below, to the propelling-wheels 22, by a clutch 207, that is also splined-to the' main transmission shaft and slides longitudinally thereon between said two bevel-pinions 205. Thus, either of the bevel-pinions may be locked to the main transmission shaft, whereby the driving axle 25 may be rotated in either direction to advance or retract the machine, as described. The clutch 207 is operated by a shifter-yoke 209, fixed to a short rock-shaft 210, arranged transversely above the main shaft and mounted in bearings 211, 211, rising from the turn-table. This rock-shaft is provided, at one end, with a crank-arm 212, which connects by a link 213, with a hand-lever 214,

which the shifter-yoke may be actuated.

As shown in Figs.- 5 and 9, the forward end of the link 213 is connected with an upstanding crank-arm 216, carried by the inner end of a tubular rock-shaft 217 the outer end -of which carries said hand-lever 214. This tubular shaft has bearings on the rock- 'shaft 93, the object being to bring the two hand-levers 214 and 95 in close proximity to each other.

Mounted upon, and rising from, the turntable is a superstructure or frame, to the upper end and to the rear of which is pivoted the rear end of the boom, said boom extending forwardly and downwardly beyond the forward end of the truck. This superstructure or frame comprises front and rear posts 100, 101, braced by diagonal members 100, the said posts bein attached at their lower ends'to the turn-ta le by angle-pieces 102, 102, and are rigidly connected at their tops by transverse girders 103, and longicudinal'members 104. The bearings 44 already mentioned are formed integral with brackets 45, which are secured to the rearposts of the superstructure.

.The boom 36, comprising two verticallyarranged plates 1n spaced parallel relation, connected at several places by transverse web-plates 107, and at the top mar- I gins by diagonals 108. These side-plates of the boom are furthermore stiffened by anglebars 109, applied at various places to the outside thereof. These plates are provided at their inner upper and lower edges with stiffening angle-bars 110, 110, which bars also form tracks on which run antifriotion rollers 111, which are incorporated in the bucket-chain 39. Above these lower anglebars 110 there are further angle-bars 106, Figs. 1 and10, in parallel spaced relation, to afford guiding grooves for the antifriction rollers at the slack, or lower run of the elevator link-chains to prevent the buckets from being lifted when they are in picking operation.

At the rear end of the boom there are provided hangers 113, 113, which are secured 'in Figs. 1, 3, and 10.

ing the forward end of the boom about its horizontal. pivots, said means being carried by the turn-table and engaging the boom approximately midway between its ends. These means comprise two screw-shafts 118,

118, located, one on each side ofthe boom,

said screws engaging nuts 119, 119. carried by the side-plates of the boom. as illustrated These nuts have trunnions 120, which extend inwardly through openings in the side-plates 105, into bearing blocks 121,121, attached to the inner sides of said plates, said trunnions being fixed from endwise movement in said bearingblocks by means of'pins 122, passing through the trunnions at their inner ends. The lower ends of these screw-shafts are cylindrical; and at a suitable distance above these lower ends there are collars 123, which sustain the scre\\'-shafts in rotatively mounted brackets 125, having vertically disposed sleeves 124 engaging the lower ends of said screws 118, and horizontally disposed, co1np'aratively long, sleeves 126. which engage a shaft 12?, extending horizontally across theupper side of the turntable at its forward end. Fixed to the lower end of each screwshaft there is a bevel-pinion 131; and fixed to the horizontal shaft 127. and at each end thereof, are bevel-pinions 132.132, engaging sald bevel-pnnons 131. thereby imparting by means of a double-face clutch 138, longi-.

tudinally movable upon the transverse shaft 127, to which the clutch is splined in the usual manner. This clutch is actuated by a shifteryoke 189, that'isfixed to the upper l end of a short vertical shaft 140, Figs ii and .6, mounted in the front end of the turn table in a bearingiz. Figs. 19, 20. The lower end of this shaft carries an arm 141, which connects, by a link 14?, with a handlever 148, pivotally-mounted on the side of the turntable onwhich also the hand-levers 214 and 95 are located. By, shifting the clutch 138 in one direction or the other'by the hand-lever 148, one or the other of the bevel-pinions 135 is locked to the shaft 127, and the boom-hoisting and lowering-screws 118 rotated in a corresponding direction,-

and the boom raised or lowered at its forward end accordingly. Vhen the clutchmember 138 occupies its central position. shown in Fig. 10, the boom-hoisting screws are disconnected from said shaft 127.

As heretofore stated, there is in the upper surface of the turn-tablea forwardly located depression or recess e,this recess being occupied by the lower halves of the three bevelpinions 185, 135, and 136,.and part of the shaft 127. Adjacent to this depression e there are semicircular depressions g, g, in the turn-table upper surface, and at a proper distance from these depressions are further depressions {1, and respectively, which, in conjunction with suitable caps, form bearings 129, for the shaft 127, while adjacent to the recesses g, 9, there are recesses 7*, through which the shaft 127 passes; and between these latter recesses and the semicircular bearings g, there are still further recesses g 51 which receive the lower halves of the bevel-pinions 132.

The bucket-chain drive shaft 43 at the rear end of the boom is driven from the motor 85 in the following manner: In the rear of, and parallel with, the motor shaft 86, and mounted in bearings 156,156, rising from the top of the turn-table there is a countershaft 155, carrying at one of its ends a spur-gear wheel 158, which meshes with a pinion 159. fixed to the outer end of the motor-shaft, portion of the lower half of said spur-gear 158 occupying a depression 7., in the rear end of the turn-table. At the other end of the shaft and loosely mounted thereon, is a smocket-wheel 160, Figs. 3 and 5. which is connected to a sprocket-wheel 1G2, fixed to the outer end of the drive-shaft 43, by a link-belt 161. The hub of the sprocket-wheel 160 is constructed to be locked to the countershaft. by a clutch 1G5, splined to, and shiftable cndwise of, the shaft The outer end of this shaft carries a collar 166. which limits the outward movement of the clutch-member 165. This clutch is operated by a shifter-lever 167.

pivoted to a bracket 168, secured at the side of the turn-table, as illustrated in Fig. 7, in an obvious manner.

The driving-gear between the motor .and the bucket-chainis provided, preferably, with a friction-coupling to prevent an. over- .loadbeing thrown on the motor and an un- (lue stress being thrown on the drivingcimne'ction and bucket-chains in case a bucket should encounter an immovable object, or a mass of material too great to be readily raised by the buckets. This fric tion coupling includes the following elements: The motor shaft 86 is made in two parts and the Worm 87 is formed, preferably integrally, on the inner end'of a sleeve 91, which loosely surrounds t-hesection of the motor-shaft next to the motor..- This sleeve is formed atitsouter end into an enlarged shell 170, to receive the elements of the friction-connection,

ther description.

,to the links of adjacent pairs.

in conjunction with friction-elements on the second section of the motor-shaft. This friction-coupling, designated, as a whole by the reference-numeral 171 in Figs. 5 and 8, is of a wellknown type and needs, therefore, no fur- The bucket chains 39, consist of short links 175, shown best in Fig. 3, which are arranged side-by-side in pairs, in overlapping relation at their ends, They are loosely connected by means of pins 176, 177 Figs. 1 and 3, the former, or those in line with the buckets being short, and the latter, or those between theibuckets, being of such length as to extend from one chain to the other, the object of which will farther on appear. The antifriction bearing-rollers 111 of said chains are rotatably mounted on the link-pins between the ends of the overlapping links, said antifriction spreading the links to provide spaces. for the teeth of the sprocket-wheels 41 on the driving shaft 43. The sprocket-wheels 40 at the forward end of theboom, are, however, of special construct-ion. Thus, the comparatively narrow teeth of these sprocket-wheels have in. their outer ends arcuated depressions 37, the curvature of which conforms to the periphery of the antifriction rollers 111, the faces of these two sprocket wheels being wider than the widest width of the link chains to guard againstthe link-chains slipping from the sprocket-wheels in case lateral pressure or force should act on the buckets to deflect the link-chains from their normal course. the upper laps, or pulling side of the bucketchains, are traveling upon the upper anglebars 110, while the rollers 111 of the lower, or slack side thereof -move on the lower angle-bars 110", between these bars and the bars 106, whereby the-weight of the buckets and the load carried thereby are borne by the upper angle bars, and the strain upon the buckets when picking up a load, received by the angle bars 106. Both the angle-bars at the lower margins of the boom have their ends curved, as indicated by the reference numeral 173, to facilitate the entry of the antifriction rollers upon the lower track-flanges.

The construction of the buckets is most clearly shown in Figs. 1, 3, and '15, and is made in the following manner: Each buckt comprises two end-walls 182, 182, a curved bottom or scoop-side, 183, and a top or loa'dparallel with the path of movement'of the rollers The antifriction rollers of wardly along buckets. The curved or scoop-side of the buckets are on the lower sides thereof, while the buckets are moving forwardly with the slack side of the bucket-chains, and in this position the buckets travel with their open sides directed forwardly to scoop .the material into the buckets as each bucket" reaches andpasses over the forwagd end of the boom. As each bucket turns over andupwardly around the forward end of the'75 boom, the bucket is inverted and the material scooped up is shifted to the flat-loadbearing side 18% thereof, to be carried backwardly on the upper laps of the chains.

The material picked up by the buckets is dumped when the latter turn at the rear end of the boom, and in order to assist them in retaining the load while traveling upwardly on the boom, there are formed atthe open sides of the buckets on the loadbearing sides thereof, narrow, inclined lips 18.. The curvature of the scoop-sides 183 of the buckets is such that the nose of each bucket will approach the horizontal surface from which the material is being picked up with the curved nose substantially parallel to the plane of said surface, or at least without being at such a sharp angle thereto as would tend to cause the nose of the scoopside of the bucket to dig or scoop into the Surface- Furthermore, the curvature of the scoop-sides of the buckets is such that said curved sides will not tend to confine the material in the buckets in a manner tovthrow the material forwardly as the buckets are passing through their discharging or dumping position at the rear end of the boom.

The scoop or load-bearing walls of thebuckets may be made of a single or integral plate, and said walls, as well as the end- Walls are reinforced by suitably-applied necessary, to provide the noses of the buckets with spuds 187 of approved construction.

The buckets span the spaces between the chains 39, and may be attached to said chains in any suitable manner. In the preferred embodiment of this invention, the attachment of the buckets to the chains consists of plates 188, riveted one to each endwall of each bucket, and on said pla tes are form'edlink-bars 175 constituting part of the'chain, said link-bars being duplicates of the links on the chain except thatthey are integrally formed with the bucket-attaching plates 188. In order to prevent material which may fall from the buckets as they pass rearthe upper side of the boom, from droppmg downwardly through the hollow boom and onto the machinery beneatlr, I provide a series of aprons 190, which extend from bucket to bucket and fill the spaces between the laterally-separated chains. Each apron is attached at one of its ends to the rear or closed side of the bucket, and at its other end to the frontmargin of the load-bearing wall at the open side of the adjacent bucket. Intermediate the buckets the aprons overlie and are supported upon the long pivot-rods orpins 17 7 of the chains, as clearly illustrated in Fig. 1.

Again referring to the take-off frame, the channel-bars 51 carry upper -and lower supportingrollers 243, 244, respectively, to support the'upper and lower laps of the take-off conveyer belt 48. The lower rollers 244 are mounted-on shafts supported in bearings 245, attached to the lower flanges of the channel-hars 51, a sufiicient number of these rollers being provided to properly support this lower lap of the belt. The up per lap of this conveyer belt 48 is preferably supported upon relatively short rollers 243, the trunnions of which'are mounted in upright standards 246 secured to the upper flanges of the longitudinal channel-bars 51. These rollers 243 are arranged in the arc of a circle to give a depressed, trough-like crosssection to the upper lap of the coriveyer belt, as clearly shown in Fig. 12. The bearings 246' for these short rollers rise from, and may be formed integrally with,

bars 241, that constitute the transverse connections for the channel bars 51 already referred to. This arrangement of the conveyor-belt prevents the material from falling off the sides of the conveyor-belt. And in order to prevent the material from falling off the sides of this belt at the place where it is dumped thereon from the buckets. I provide guard-plates 250, 250, arranged vertically, one at each side of the conveyorbelt. Such guard-plates may be "attached. as by means of angle-pieces 251, Figs. and 5, to the rear posts 101 of the turn-table superstructure, and they afford means for the attachment of flexible aprons 253 said guard-plates being cut awayat their rear lower margins as indicated by'the reference numeral 252, in Fig. 2. These aprons lie at their lower margins on the transversely-curved upper surface of the conveyer-belt. as illustrated in Fig. 12; and they extend below the lower margins of the guard-plates and fill the space between the lower margins and that portion of the conveyer belt that is inclined upwardly and rearwardly from the front conveyor-beltsupportingdrum 49.

In order to prevent the material from sliding forwardly off the inclined upper lap of the belt at the forward end, a rea iwvardly and downwardly-inclined guard-plate 254, is arranged over said upper lap above the drum 49 with its lower edge closely adjacent to said lap. This inclined guard-plate I in the same direction; but when the pawl extends between the rear posts of the turn table superstructure and may be attached thereto in any. suitable manner.

The conveyer-belt supporting-frame is supported approximately in its middle by front and rear uprights or posts 256, 257.

' respectively, preferably connected by diagonal members 266, which are secured'to the longitudinal chan iel-bars 51, preferably by bolts 258, and they are carried upon runners or shoes 255, 255, arranged parallel with the normal path of movement of the standard 259, being connected by a wormgear connection 268, to an intermediate shaft 262, that carries a sprocketwheel 263, about which, and a sprocket-wheel 261, on the conveyer-belt drive shaft 60, is trained a link-belt 265.

Referring now to the mechanism for steering the truck. the same is best illustrated in Figs. 4. 16, 17, and 1S, and comprises the following elements; The hubs 32 of the stub-axles or spindles 28are'pro 'ided with rearwardlyextending crank-arms 218, 218. that are connected by a link 219, extending transversely beneath the truck. One of these hubs 32has also a forwardly extending crankarn1 220. to the forward end of which is pivoted a horizontally arranged yoke 222. This yoke carries. pivotally mountedat its end remote from the arm 220, a screw-threaded nut 223. which receives,

and is engaged by a shaft 224, having por- .which carries a spring-pressed pawl 231,

that is located in thcplane of said notched disk and is adapted to engage the notches in the periphery of said disk. The said pawl consists of a bar that extends through apertured guide-lugs 232 at the side of the handlever next to said disk. and said pawl is normally pressed toward said disk by a spiral spring 233. interposed between one of the guide-lugs and a transverse pin 23;), passing through the pawl. The end of the pawl next to the disk is beveled at 236, Fig. 17. so that in swinging the haml-lcver230 with its pawl in one direction the pawl will slip out of the notches and over intcrmc within easy reach of the operator although may be easily reached by the operator withbe handled by an attendant walking in front board 215.

wear in thev eyes of the links and of the-pins 'ing through said plates and slots therein.

nuts, the plates may be pulled or pushed backward or forward, as the case 'may be,

is rotated halfway around, the operations 'of the hand lever will rotate the notched disk in the opposite direction. This rotation of the notched disk causes the nut 223 011 the shaft 224; to move laterally, and through the medium of the vyoke 2'22'and crank-arm 220 to swing the connected axlespindles and the wheels thereon in the corresponding direction and thus steer the machine in the direction desired.

It will be manifest that the screw-threaded connection of the shaft 224, with the nut 223, serves to hold the steering mechanism rigidly in any adjusted position; and I may, in this connection state that this machine is not intended for traveling by its own power any great distances upon streets and roads, so that the steering-mechanism heretofore described will not be called upon for frequent manipulation, and when needed, may

of the machine. For this reason, no provislon is made to brlng the steeringflever 230 all the'other hand-levers by which the actions of the various operating mechanisms are controlled, are clustered together and out changing his position on the running- In view of the fact that metallic link belts are subject to elongation caused by the that connect the links, means are provided to take up any slack in the elevator belts on the boom. These means, heretofore desi nated by the reference-numeral 47, include, as shown in Figs. 1 and 11, two longitudinally-slotted plates, one on each side of the side-plates 105 of the boom, and secured to the forward end thereof by bolts 269, pass- The bearings 46 for the forward sprocketshaft 42 are formed, preferably integral with the plates 4L7. Each of these plates has a rearwardly-projecting, fixedly secured,

adjusting screw 270, which moves freely in an abutment-block 271, secured to the sideplate of the boom in the rear of the plate 47. Lock-nuts 272, 273, upon' said screw at the sides of said abutment afl'ord means for moving the slotted plate 47 longitudinally on the boom. Thus, by slacking up the bolts 269,'and then slacking up the respective lock-nuts on one side of the abutments and screwing up the opposite lockand the tension of the elevator link-belts adjusted in an eflicient manner. 4

I now desire to call attention to the fact that under ordinary working con itions, the boom swings at its forward end seldom through a horizontal are greater than 20 degrees to-either side of the longitudinal line of the truck. It follows that the horizontal movement of the boom at its rear end, compared with that of the forward end, bears the same ratio as the distance from the pivotal point of the turn-table to the forward end of the booin, bears to the distance from this pivotal point to the rearend pivotal point of the boom, which is, therefore, very slight; and that the take-oft' device that is pivoted at its fhrward end to the rear end of the turn-table moves in unison with the rear end of the turn-table and in the same direction, so that the ma terial dropped from the rear end of the boom always falls fairly and squarely upon the conveyer-belt 48; and that "one or the other end of the cross-bar at the forward end ofthe take-ofl device seldom reaches over the rear end of the turn-table.

Attention is called,to the fact that by pivoting the-turn-table at its rear end to the rear end of the truck, and locating thesupporting anti-friction rollers near the forward end thereof, the track for these rollers being at and under the forward end of the turn-table, I attain theimportant result of securing a very long supporting base for- ,the turn-table without increasing the length of the same, and that the tendency of the turn-table to lift at its rear end under the influence of the weight of the superstructures thereon, is entirely avoided. By locating the elevating and lowering device for the boom at the extreme forward end of the turn-table, which device sustains the major portion of the weight of the boom and the load thereon, there is but a slight tendency, if any, of the boom to lift at its forward end, and cause the buckets to slip over or recede from the material which the buckets are to pick up, and that this result is accomplished without being compelled to lock, brace, or otherwise fasten the machine-down to the ground, as .is frequently necessary with other loading machines. Attention is also again called to the fact that by giving to the truck and the turn-table the form of an ihverted pan, I attain the very important result of attaining a very low machine since many of the operating parts thereof panbe, and are located in the spaces and top-surfaces of these two parts, so that this machine is especially well adapted for use in mines, tunnels. and other low and confined places.

By the term ployed to designate the motive power which operates the moving parts, I desire to in- In the drawlngs, Figs. 1 and 2,1 have shown the superstructure carrying the pivotclude any, suitable machine capable of de- 120. motor hereinbefore emomitted and the longitudinal girders 104 lowered accordingly, and the transverse girders 103.0initted, in all cases where the ,overhead room in a tunnel or mine is limited'.

While this machine is primarily designed for operation in tunnels, mines. and trenches, for loading the loose material, it is evident that. it may also be successfully employed for picking up, and loading material in' any other place, and that where sand and other comparatively loose piaterial is to be dug and removed, thismiachine will be capable of doing the digging andpicking up of the loose material muchjcheaper than it can be done by hand labor. And while I have described the various'details of the machine with considerable particularity, it is to be understood that many of the structural details are susceptible of considerable variationwithoutdeparture from the scope of this invention. I am also aware that some of the details of construction hereinbefore described are not claim'able 'in'this present application. These will, therefore, be presented in separate applications for Letters Patent, as divisions carved out of this parent application.

' I shall now explain the importance of the cooperation of the rotatable turn-table, the propelling'means of the machine, the boomraising and lowering means, and the movingpick-up and elevating mechanism on the boom, by assuming that in picking up loose material, an object, such as a rock, boulder or similar matter is met which is too long tobe picked up by the bucket, or so tightly embedded in the ground as to prevent its being lifted. In this case the operator may stop the picking up mechanism and turn the forward end of the boom slightly to one side of the object to be lifted and start the propelling device forwardly to push or turn the object'so that thebucket may pick it up, and he may do this repeatedlyif necessary to accomplish the object in view, or-to loosen the object sufiicient-ly so that it can be picked up. Or he may lift the boom at its forward end to pass over the obstruction to pick up material behind the same to free the obstructing object. It

will thus be seen that all of the movements in full view and can-directjhevarious move-' ments of the machine without. changing his position on the runnlng board, and that all of these various movements may be brought into and taken out of action without stoping loose material, the combination, of a wheeled truck, a pivot projecting from said truck upwardly, a horizontally swinging turn-table supported on said truck-pivot at one end, a boom pivotally supported at its rear end upon said turn-table to swing vi?- tically at its forward end only, means constructed 'to directly and positively connect the boom to the forward end of the turntable, whereby the bulk of the weight of the turn-table and its appurtenants is added to' the weight of the boom to resist vertical movement of theboom at its forward end'in picking-up operation, a traveling pickup and conveying device carried by said boom, a motor, operative connection between said motor and said turn-table to swing said turn-table on its pivot, the pivotal point of said turn-table being at its rear end and at the rear end of said truck, said turn-table being supported at its forward end upon said truck, there being no support for said turntable at its rear end beyond said pivot-support. i i

2. A machine for picking up and loading loose material, including, in combination, a wheeled truck, a pivot on said truck and projecting upwardly therefrom, a horizontally swinging turn-table supported on said truck-pivot at one end, a boom pivotally supported on said turn-table to swing vertically, a travelingpickup and conveying device carried by said boom, a motor, operative connection between, said motor and said turn-table to swing said turn-table on its pivot, the pivotal point of said turn-' table being at its rear endand at the rear end of said truck, said turn-table being supported at its forward end upon said truck,'there being no support for said turntable at its rear end beyond said pivot-support, the pivotalpoint of said turn-table and the 'pivot on said truck being at one side of the longiti dinal'center line of both. the turn-table an the truck.

3. A machine for picking up and loading loose material, including, in combination, a wheeled truck, a pivot on said truck and projecting upwardly'therefrom, a horizontally swinging turn-table supported on said truck-pivot at one end, a boom pivotally supported on said turn-table to swing vertically, a traveling pickup and elevation device earned by said boom, a motor, operative connection between said motor'and said turn-table to swing said turntable on its pivot, said turn-table being of inverted pan 

